


Child Of Two Worlds

by TSia



Category: Star Trek: The Original Series
Genre: Gen, T'Sia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-07
Updated: 2013-03-07
Packaged: 2017-12-04 14:29:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,646
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/711754
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TSia/pseuds/TSia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Spock learns an important lesson.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Child Of Two Worlds

Disclaimer : No money made with this. Not my universe.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The snow crunched under Amanda's boots as she walked between her brother and her Vulcan husband. The bags in her hands grew heavy while they followed the street leading up to her parents' house. Her breath puffed from her mouth in white clouds while she tried to bear the weight of the shopping bags and keep up a light conversation with her brother. Sarek walked stoically beside her and did not look up when she stole a glance at him.

She could not help but admire his patience. Two weeks of Christmas vacation, with her parents and the family of her brother, exposed to constant ruckus and some bickering of a human clan, topped by the icy surroundings of her parent's newly acquired mountain property. His meditation periods had slightly increased in length, but he had not even once lifted a brow at the piercing cries of her brother's kids or the constant chattering of her mother. He did not even comment on the lack of replicators in her parents house, a fact that forced them to go into town for grocery shopping eventually, or the fact that they had to take an old style ground car to do so, which kindly chose that trip to break down, which is why they have to transport the groceries uphill by foot now.

A gentle smile came to her lips. No wonder he was such a good diplomat. He deserved a prize for patience. Spock had been such an angel too. Not once did he question human behavior, a habit that had led to some uncomfortable situations during their last visit for he did not bother to query her or criticize another person's behavior in a private setting. This time he observed in silence - for her benefit.

'My Vulcan men. Real troopers, the both of them,' she thought fondly.

“... he can sled down on his butt and get it,” she heard her brother say when something touched her right hand. Surprised she looked at her husband. Vulcans did not hold hands - of course they didn't, she realized his intent. She felt a warm pulse from the marital bond and let Sarek take her bag and add it to the two he was already carrying. “Right, Amanda?”

Her head whipped around to face her brother when she realized she was totally not listening to what he had said.

“I said if dad wants that rotten truck back he can sled down on his butt and get it himself,” her brother repeated.

Amanda could not help the chuckle she let out at the mental image, even though her brother's words in front of Sarek slightly embarrassed her, given that Vulcans honored their elders to such an extent. They wouldn't even think such undignified … her chuckle grew into unrestrained laughter when an image fluttered through her mind that was definitely not the product of her own thoughts.

'Rebel!', she shot Sarek a thought and saw his eyebrow lift the fraction of an inch. He did not deny her accusation, though.

When they came up to the house she could hear her brother's kids playing in the backyard, probably building a snowman, with her father helping and Spock watching from inside. She had finally stopped to feel sorry for him for seeming to be left out, understanding that he chose to remain inside because he wanted to, not because the others wouldn't let him participate. Some incidents at Spock's school on Vulcan had made her wary though and she doubted that her son spent all his free time alone voluntarily, but then maybe he did – for reasons she did not appreciate either. She saw Sarek giving her a questioning look, probably sensing her unease, and she pushed the thoughts to the back of her mind to be dealt with at the proper time.

~*~

“About time,” her mother exclaimed when they entered the kitchen to dispose of the shopping bags. “Your father was about to send out a search party.”

“For his truck, he can,” Amanda's brother answered.

Not keen on witnessing the following conversation Amanda slipped off into the living room. From there she had a look into the spacious backyard where she saw her father and her nephews playing in the snow. Spock was not with them, but he was also not in his favorite place on the broad windowsill to watch his cousins play outside. Her gaze wandered through the room and she spotted the carefully stacked boxes against a wall, beside them the undecorated Christmas tree, ready to be packed away for next year. She sighed despite herself. The season and this wonderful vacation was coming to its end – and she was not quite ready. The crackling of the fire in the open fireplace caught her attention and she followed the sound, mindful of her cold hands and eager to warm them close to the gentle burning cedar wood.

When she rounded the corner she saw Spock kneeling in front of the fireplace. She smiled gently – he'd probably had the same idea she did and chose to enjoy the warmth of the fire against the colder human standard temperature of the room. 'Enjoyed?' a niggling mental voice taunted in her head. 'Appreciated would be the less emotional term,' it continued. She frowned lightly. 'No, he's my son, I'm sticking to the word enjoy,' she thought. Lately she had developed the curious tendency to debate with herself the reasons for Spock's behavior – down to vocabulary. It was annoying at times, but pleasing as well when she won against – herself. The thought made her smirk.

She extended a hand to lay it on Spock's head when she approached, but then thought better of it. She sank to her knees beside him. He turned his head towards her, the flames of the fire reflecting in the perfect glossy black cap of his hair.

“Greetings, mother. Grandmother was concerned for your well being when you did not return in the time of my estimate.”

“Your estimate?” Amanda queried.

Spock nodded. “She asked for it,” he replied.

“Oh, did she?”

“Yes, she said 'I wonder how much longer this is going to take them' and I supplied the time frame, factoring in the number of items on the shopping list, the speed of the groundcar and the environmental conditions.” He frowned lightly. “Yet, you spent more time than calculated. There must have been an error in my computations.”

Amanda bit her lip to keep from laughing and this time she did not stop herself when she lifted a hand and ruffled his hair. “No baby. I'm sure your calculations were fine, but you could not possibly factor in a broken car.”

Spock nodded thoughtful. “That must be the reason,“ he agreed.

“Did you pack away the Christmas decorations?”

Spock nodded. “I proposed an improved sorting system for storage, but grandmother insisted I organize them the way I have now.”

Amanda pursed her lips. “You know, the efficiency of her sorting system is of the kind that just she can see.“

“This is not logical. I could...”

“Spock – it's pointless. Believe me I tried. Just drop it.”

To his merit Spock did not try to interpret her literally and 'dropped' the matter as she had asked.

“Where did you put the decorations you made?”

Spock's gaze flickered to the fireplace briefly and then he looked at her with a questioning gaze. “I dealt with them in a logical manner, of course.” Why was his mother asking?

Amanda felt dread rise up in her when she had an inkling what had happened to the precious pieces Spock had hand made for her to put up in the family tree. “Spock? Where?” she asked again, hoping he would not confirm her suspicion. To her dismay, however he slowly turned his head to the fireplace. She followed his gaze and could make out the last glimmering traces of a wooden star, blackened by fire.

“Oh no!” she exclaimed and picked up the fire hook. Carefully, she fished for the item, but it was already burned and fell away to ashes. She laid down the fire hook and looked at her son, a crease of anger showing on her forehead. “Oh Spock, you shouldn't have done that! Did you not see how much Grandma and I liked them?”

Spock was clearly puzzled by her behavior and opened his mouth to speak, but a deeper voice answered for him.

“It is well, Spock. You were not in error.”

They both turned and saw Sarek standing a few feet away.

“But...,” Amanda continued, only Sarek cut her off gently, but firmly.

“My wife, we talked about this before,” he said and Amanda knew the discussion was at a halt for now, although his mental presence signaled his willingness to continue in private as a response to her emotional distress.

She compressed her lips briefly, then looked back at her son. “Alright. Sorry honey, I'm not mad at you. I'm grateful you helped your grandmother, “ she said and hoped her smile would soften her former outburst. “Speaking of her, I'm sure she'd appreciate some help with stowing away the groceries. I'll go help her.” She got up quickly and left the room, before her smile faltered.

Spock looked after her, still troubled. “Why is mother in distress, father? The pieces served out their logical purpose. They trained my creativity and fine motor skills in designing and creating them. They also fulfilled their purpose of pleasing her. They even exceeded their purpose by also pleasing grandmother and warming the house by transforming part of their physical structure to pure energy,” he explained.

Sarek nodded, pleased but also a bit amused by his son's reasoning and the rather drastic consequences for the decorations. But what was done, is done. “This is true, son. But unlike Vulcans, Humans attach emotional value not only to living things but also to physical objects.“

“That is not logical. I can make new decorations for her next year. They will even be finer in design and quality since my skills will improve further,” Spock argued.

“Correct. However, Humans form a connection to the past through memories attached to objects made by individuals they are close to. The decorations had emotional value to her, because it was you who made them. Their quality is of secondary importance to her.”

“Will she be distraught for long?” Spock asked, careful to keep his concern out of his voice.

“Negative. You mother will understand. Come now, we shall stow away the decoration boxes.”

“Yes, father,” Spock replied, but waited until his father had turned around before he put his hand into his pocket.

~*~

Amanda paced their bedroom and wrung her hands. “I know Vulcans don't place value in material possessions, and that appreciating art focuses more on the process of creation and the skills acquired by it than by admiring the result. It is logical to find other purposes for the product, but burning them - I'm sorry, it just caught me by surprise.”

Sarek nodded in understanding. “While his choice was rather – radical – he did right in trying to find a new purpose for his creation.”

Amanda snorted. “Yeah, but can you see T'Zehn burning her paintings or Snak smashing his ka'athyra for firewood?”

Sarek even lifted both eyebrows this time. “I trust they find more suitable purposes for their creations. Spock probably tried to find the most efficient one. His logic is still that of a child.”

"Yeah, I guess we're lucky he did not deem it appropriate to dispose of all decorations...," Amanda joked.

"He would not touch what is not his," Sarek remarked.

"Of course he wouldn't," Amanda answered, but her thoughts had already moved on. She stopped pacing and a glum expression crossed her features. “I was too hard on him, wasn't I? I should apologize to him.” She turned to go to the door, but Sarek stood from the bed and blocked her way.

“I explained it to him, Amanda. Further emotional displays would merely serve to strengthen his insecurity in this matter. I advise against it. An apology would not be logical.”

Amanda looked at her feet. “But he's also just a little boy who tried to do the right thing - and I snapped at him...”

Sarek placed a finger under her chin and lifted it until she had to look him in the eyes. “Amanda, he may be just a boy, but he is our son. He understands.”

Amanda took his hand and leaned her forehead against his chest. “I hope so,” she sighed.

~*~

Spock waited until the sounds in the house had ceased before he got up and left his room. He padded over to the door leading to his parents room. He could see soft light glowing from under the wooden door, by the occasional flicker of it he deduced that it originated from a candle. He couldn't hear voices from inside either. That confirmed his assumption that his mother was asleep and his father in meditation. Carefully he opened the door, ready to retreat, but inside he found the situation as he had expected. He could see his father's back through the open door to the adjoining room. He was sitting in meditation pose, a candle before him serving as a replacement for the common fire pot Vulcans used for meditation. His father didn't stir so Spock entered the room further, approaching the bed where he could make out is mother's sleeping form. She lay on her side facing away from him and he rounded the bed to glimpse her face. Her eyes were closed and her breathing was deep an even. Slowly he stepped closer and stopped beside her hand that lay outstretched above the covers.

He lifted his arm and uncurled his fingers to reveal a small wooden star lying in the palm of his hand. It was the last of the decorations he had made for her. He had been about to add it to the fire when she had entered the room earlier this afternoon. First distractedly, and later caused by confusion, he had clutched it in his hand during their conversation. When his father had left to stow away the boxes he had decided not to add the item to the fire, even though he knew his behavior was inconsistent. He had debated with himself to go down to the fireplace and remedy his error during the evening, but he found he could not.

His father had said that Humans attached emotions and memories to objects. An unfamiliar practice for Vulcans. With their eidetic memories they did not need physical memory triggers, but Humans seemed to use personal objects to connect them to their past. He therefore concluded that this little star in his hand connected his mother to him in a way that exceeded their daily life together. He knew, yet did not understand fully the reason why, she suffered through the distance put between them by Vulcan tradition. He would not be a little boy for much longer. Maybe this item could connect her to his current self for years to come and lessen her pain.

He glanced briefly at his father. Sarek would probably stay in meditation the whole night, so this could remain a secret between him and his mother. His decision made, he slipped the star under his mother's hand so that she would find it upon waking up. Satisfied with his decision, he slipped out quietly and returned to his room.

Sarek got up smoothly after his son left the room and approached his sleeping wife. In the flickering firelight he could see the edge of a wooden star peeking out from beneath her hand.

Fascinating. A unique way of balancing Human and Vulcan traditions. Truly a child of two worlds.

THE END


End file.
